I'm reading about 1 kid who supposedly has a 2 seam fastball, Spiked Curve (what the hell is that?) and a knuckle curve (wish and Astros pitcher had one of those!). But what the hell is wrong with little league coaches and fathers, isn't this kid way to young to be throwing that stuff? Somebody said Don Sutton had a rule that you couldn't throw a curve till you could shave. Is that still a good rule? Now I know there are prodigies in all sports, but isn't it a little over the top for LL pitcher who may be damaging his arm? I mean a prodigy golfer just has a swing, doesn't have 5 swings, just really good with that 1 swing. JO'Co? Corey? AJ? Krebs?
I do not like the LL WS at all. Kids should not be throwing anything more than fastballs and circle changes at that age in my opinion. What makes the WS so hypocritical is that the announcers and MLB analysts rave about these kids throwing curveballs and sliders. Officially LL discourages these breaking balls but when the money is on the table they revel in it.
Last night while watching GA vs. FL, I saw a Florida kid flip his bat after hitting a HR in a way that would get him drilled at the HS level and higher the next time he came to the plate.
I'm not a fan of the Little League World Series either. I'm against putting kids that age on TV. Its just not healthy and it gives them a distorted concept of reality. Its also not good for their parents. Twenty years ago, the best player in the local Little League (and his parents) thought he was something special. He was very difficult to coach, which means that he didn't improve much. He never played a single inning of high school ball. He was cut from the freshman team. Meanwhile, there was another kid that year who never even played Little League Majors, because no Little League coach ever picked him up; not even as a 12 year-old. He went on to become a starting player on the varsity for our local high school here by his senior year. So how important was Little League? Sid makes a good point. Little League is about kids having fun in the summer and learning basic concepts of competition and sportsmanship. If they can learn some fundamentals of the game too, that's a plus, but nobody should confuse it with real baseball. Its a developmental level and those coaches who put winning above learning are hurting the kids. re: spiked curveball I've never heard of it. Probably something some Little League daddy dreamed up after he had a few following a tough loss. You've got to watch those big idea guys when they're in the sauce. Why would you need to invent another spinner besides the slider and the curve? What exactly is it supposed to do? Consider: Four seam fastball, plus two seam fastball, plus straight change-up; all thrown at two different speeds to three different locations. That's 3X2X3=18. Eighteen different pitches without using a single slider, curve or trick pitch. How many pitches do you need to get through a six inning Little League game anyway? Even in high school and college, pitchers are told to use their three best pitches in the game. If a pitcher can control those three pitches to three different locations and change speeds, it will take an exceptional hitter to beat him: at any level. .......JO'Co
The spike curve and the knuckle curve are the same pitch. The knuckle curve can really be anything of 3, 4 or 5 different pitches that all fall under the same category. I have huge hands (xxl gloves fit tight) and a father who taught me how to identify the pitch, grip and seem by touch by the time I was 10...I can flip zippos, cell phones and cards seamlessly thru my fingers without looking.. I say all that to point out, I didn't need help putting action on the ball by using anything but my fingers alone. Some guys have smaller or weaker hands and don't have that luxory. For this pitch, you dig your index nail into the closed horsehoe end of the seam and run your middle finger down along the long seam of the ball.. I found some dbag showing this off on the internet.. Dont bother thanking him, he probably won't know I am borrowing it. The arm and finger action are the same as a standard curveball. The downside to this pitch. (aside from arm wear) is that you better be good at hiding your pitch. This is an easy one to tip.. If I see that knuckle spiked up at any point in time, I am closing off my front side, sliding up in the box like a slow pitch HR hitter with evil intention on seeing just how fast your right and center fielders are.. Telling people you throw this, probably isn't the smartest thing out there. You just do it. It's an easy pitch to scout and once your opposition finds your tip, you won't be able to throw this unless it is in the dirt.
During my coaching days in LL I saw two pitching phenoms up close. There were a lot of good "throwers" but these two were way above the pack. Both of their fathers were their coaches as well and had them training year around. Both not only had all the gas they would need but were throwing split fingers and snapping off curves as well. When they weren't pitching, their dads both had them playing SS because that was the glory position ( and the longest throw in the IF ). Neither pitched in high school. One hurt his shoulder and arm at 14 and ended up as an average first baseman who could barely throw the ball across the infield. The other hated the pressure his dad put on him in LL and started getting into trouble with drugs. We just buried him at age 27 of a opiate induced heart attack where he literally dropped dead in front of his father. Yes, not a big fan of LL or overbearing fathers.
re: spiked curve Terry listed that as a different pitch from the knuckle curve, but I agree with Corey. It's the same pitch. It has to be and very few use it for the reason that Corey stated: you can't hide it. Furthermore...the tipsy dad is holding it wrong anyway. If this is supposed to be a knuckle curve, then his middle finger should be running along the side of the seam, not on top of it. re: pitcher who hurt his shoulder in George's post That was the split-finger (forkball) that did that. That pitch is a shoulder eater that destroys the rotator cuffs of young pitchers. Neither Corey or I allowed our pitchers to throw it. BTW- the Dodgers never allowed their pitchers to throw sliders until the late 1970's when Lasorda took over. Koufax, Drysdale, Podres, Sutton, Perranowski...none of them threw sliders. Fastball, sinker, change-up and curve are much easier on the arms/shoulders of young pitchers.
I am only 32 but I remember the LL rule was that you were not allowed to throw curve balls until the all-star tournament started. Curve balls kills the arm unless taught properly but even so kids try to do more arm action then needed for the curve that results in injuries. Now I think LL allows curve balls all season long, which is a joke along with these bats. If you just listen to the sound and not the picture, you would think your watching golf with all the pings going on.